The city’s Comprehensive Plan (PDF link) is just that — a plan that covers every aspect of how Spokane aims to grow and develop in the coming years. Put simply, it’s our city’s vision for the future, and it determines what kind of decisions are made in the here and now. If the Comprehensive Plan mandates that the future of housing is in floating islands suspended by airships, you can (almost) bet that the city will direct current home-building practices toward this end.

But the vision of the future is not writ in stone, and it has to adapt to the ever-changing present. That’s why the Comprehensive Plan is updated every few years, and those updates are usually carried out with input from the public.

If the public doesn’t get involved in these processes, then the city naturally assumes everything is hunky dory and goes ahead with whatever it was going to do in the first place — which is precisely what has led to questionable planning decisions in the past. Not that the city is entirely at fault in these cases. How can they serve your neighborhood if the needs of your neighborhood aren’t made known to them?

Don’t feel as though you have to be an expert on planning to attend. Each meeting will begin with a presentation on the background of the Comprehensive Plan and the update process. That will be followed by an interactive survey and activity stations.

For more info, contact Jo Anne Wright or Nikole Coleman-Porter in the Planning Department at (509) 625-6300.

Oh, and five points to whoever can name the town depicted in the drawing above.